Sexy Art

Pornotopia, Albuquerque's first independent erotic film festival, debuted to a cascade of controversy last year. Self Serve Sexuality Resource Center partnered with Guild Cinema to present Pornotopia—a weekend of film dedicated to showcasing sex as healthy, real and beautiful—only to have the city attempt to shut it down, citing a zoning code that had the Guild out of "nude approved" range. Pornotopia persevered and is gearing up for Year Two with some additions. One is an art show at STOVE centered on sexuality and censorship. Self Serve and STOVE are seeking submissions for the exhibit, and any work that is erotic and/or an honest representation of sexuality will be considered. Artists can drop off their submissions at STOVE (114 Morningside NE) from 1 to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 9, or e-mail digital art to spiralelements@gmail.com by Friday, Oct. 10, at 1 p.m. Be sure to include your name, the piece's title and its sale price with your entry. If you have questions, call 265-5815.

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Cautionary Tales: A Visual Dystopia and Finding a Pulse at 516 Arts

By David Leigh

Andrew Bird’s Armchair Apocrypha is a near-perfect album. It’s crept onto my mix albums, my iPod, my car and my home stereo. I’m listening to it now. I might be obsessed. It’s one of those albums that throws light throughout a creative labyrinth in which new ideas emerge, creating a generous lyrical and musical iron lung (in the best sense). It lacks the irony or cynicism that would make two or three listens too many and instead invites something like belief from the audience. But for all its spacey, finger-picked loveliness, it’s a work of realism, couched in mortal inevitability and certitude.

Frankenstein at UNM's Rodey Theatre

By Amy Dalness

In Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, scientist Victor Frankenstein's desire to bring life to the dead turns from wondrous dream into nightmarish reality. In R.N. Sandberg's stage adaptation, Victor's personal torment, not his creature, is the star, and the UNM Department of Theatre and Dance's production pours the contents of the doctor's psyche onto the stage.

Grottesco’s 12th Night at the Santa Fe Opera's Stieren Hall

By Amy Dalness

Theater Grottesco takes suspended disbelief to a new level. The theater company got its start in Paris in 1983 and is rooted in the same training as Cirque du Soleil. The troupe moved to Santa Fe in 1996 and continues to produce original works, all the while keeping the meaning of their Italian eponym in mind: absurd, splendid and jubilant.